Effects of latitudinal, seasonal, and daily temperature variations on chytrid fungal infections in a North American frog

As human activities alter environmental conditions, the emergence and spread of disease represents an increasing threat to wildlife. Studies that examine how host–pathogen relationships play out across seasons and latitudes can serve as proxies for understanding how natural and anthropogenic changes in climate may influence infection and disease dynamics. Amphibians are ideal host organisms for studying the impacts of climate on disease because they are ectothermic and threatened by chytridiomycosis, a recently emerged and globally important disease caused by fungal pathogens in the genus Batrachochytrium. Previous studies suggest that temperature affects the interaction between amphibians and Batrachochytrium pathogens. However, a clearer understanding of this host–pathogen–environment interaction is needed to predict how the risk of chytridiomycosis will vary in space and time. Here, we investigate how daily, seasonal, and latitudinal variations in temperature affect the incidence and..., Data provided include results from an exposure experiment with Acris crepitans and Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, results from a field study of Acris crepitans across latitudes, and mark-recapture data for Acris crepitans. See publication in Ecosphere (Sonn et al. 2019) for full methods description.,